Oliver Kahn in talks with Schalke for general manager’s post

Rheda (Germany), March 20 (DPA) Former Germany goalkeeper Oliver Kahn is in talks with Schalke 04 for the club’s general manager’s post. Kahn and Schalke supervisory board chairman Clemens Toennies met a week after former general manager Andreas Mueller had to leave over poor results this season and questionable player transfers.

Mueller, 46, left the club in Gelsenkirchen after almost 21 years as a player and manager.

Dutch coach Fred Rutten, however, has stayed on. Schalke came third last season but currently lie only eighth in the table, 12 points behind leaders Hertha Berlin.

The former World Goalkeeper Kahn was capped 86 times by Germany and also made 557 Bundesliga appearances for SC Karlsruhe and Bayern Munich.

The 39-year-old retired last year and is now seeking a job in a club management. German football icon Franz Beckenbauer and former star coach Udo Lattek advised him not to take the Schalke job due to lack of experience.

Kahn said nothing had been decided yet after the meeting with Toennies in an interview with the website of Der Spiegel news magazine.

“It was an interesting exchange of information but there is nothing definitive to report,” Kahn said.

Toennies told WDR radio: “We both agreed to telephone each other in two or three weeks. Kahn is an expert and a great guy. We discussed a concept and it was very good.

“Schalke are a great club and everyone wants to be here. We still want to talk to other candidates to treat them fairly.”

VfL Wolfsburg coach and general manager Felix Magath has also been linked with the Schalke job. The Stuttgarter Zeitung Thursday named VfB Stuttgart general manager Horst Heldt as a another possible man for the Schalke job.